Editorial: Casting a wider net to fill top jobs

Wednesday

Nov 26, 2008 at 12:01 AMNov 26, 2008 at 7:10 AM

While there is a continuing strong argument to use the civil service tests for selection of the bulk of public service positions, it is time to remove the top police jobs such as police and fire chiefs from that process.

When Massachusetts established its civil service commission about 125 years ago – at the time becoming a leader among states in creating the meritocracy for government employ – it effectively ended the corrupt partisan approach of the “spoils system” to award public sector jobs.

But while there is a continuing strong argument to use the civil service tests for selection of the bulk of public service positions, it is time to remove the top police jobs such as police and fire chiefs from that process.

Weymouth Mayor Sue Kay is pondering such an option to fill the police chief slot left vacant by the retirement of former Chief James Thomas. But with the requirement of a home rule petition approved by the Legislature, it is likely a process that cannot be completed without leaving the department adrift with no clear direction from the top.

That, though, should not dissuade Weymouth officials or the other communities in out region from moving the posts off the civil service rolls now before their next vacancy. Without the pressure of a deadline to fill a void, there is time for cities and towns to change their systems using deliberate and studied debate with input from the affected department members as well as taxpayers.

Of the 26 cities and towns in our region, nine still select police chiefs through the civil service process, where the top three scorers on the defined list are the candidates whose names are forwarded to the municipality’s hiring authorities.

But among those nine that still have civil service chiefs are some of the largest communities in our region, such as Quincy, Weymouth and Plymouth. And towns with a growing diversity of population and challenges such as Randolph and Hull also still utilize civil service.

Plymouth and Quincy this year just hired new police chiefs and Randolph Police Chief Paul Porter gave notice of his retirement then retracted it, but certainly putting town officials on notice they need to prepare for his departure.

Appointing a civil service police chief is, in essence, a lifetime sinecure, one that cannot be undone as circumstances in a town or department change.

Police departments in the 21st century are evolving day to day, let alone from chief to chief. There are ever-changing tactical and administrative considerations that need to be addressed as well as technical and managerial. The best candidate is not always the one who scores the highest on the test or one who knows the names of everyone in the community, although those are certainly desirable conditions upon which to measure a potential chief.

And the best candidate may not even be one whose name is on the list. Under civil service, unless an outside candidate is aware of a position opening, local officials’ hands are tied in proactively soliciting qualified candidates in other states.

A change would not preclude candidates from within. Indeed, the best candidate may already be in the ranks. Quincy police chief Paul Keenan, who took over in July, and newly appointed Plymouth police chief Michael Boteiri are quality selections. But who is to say the next round in either of those towns will include similar candidates rather than just three people who test well?

As police and fire departments respond to new challenges every day, taxpayers need to be assured the best person for the job was not overlooked